Envelope-fastening



UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE A. HARRIS, OF BRIDGETON, NEV JERSEY.

ENVELOPE-FASTENING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 510,787, dated December 12, 1893.

Serial No. 483,517. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.'

Be it known that I, GEORGE A. HARRIS, of Bridgeton, in the county of Cumberland and State of New Jersey, have invented a new and Improved Envelope-Fastening, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

The object of my invention is to provide an improved fastening for envelopes, which maybe securely applied to the envelope, and which will permit the envelope to be readily opened when desired, and its contents examined, and further, to provide a durable fastener which will enable the envelope to be employed for'filing away its contents in condition to permit ready reference to the same at any time.

The invention consists in the novel construction hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings forming part of this specification, in which similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

Figure l is a perspective view of an envelope having my improvements applied thereto, the envelope being shown open. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the blank from which the flap attachment is formed. Fig. 8 is a plan view of the blank from which the attachment'applied to the body of the envelope is formed; and Fig. 4 is an enlarged transverse lsection taken centrally through the envelope and its attachments.

The envelope A may be of the ordinary form, and of any desired size. To the body of the envelope, at the junction or point of overlapping of the side flaps a, a, of the body, there is secured the metallic reinforce B, in the form ofa plate, of the shape shown in Fig. 3, which preferably has one edge rounded as at b. The plate is secured to the envelope by bending it on itself, as shown best in Fig. 4, whereby it may receive the edge of the envelope, at the center of the latter, and a series of perforations b', formed in the plate, aid materially in retaining it in position on the envelope, as the material of the latter, when the folds orbendsgof the plate are clamped or pressed tightly on the envelope, will enter the perforations and cause the attachment to take 5o positive hold.

At the edge of the part of the plate that lies on the exterior of the envelope, an integral, flexible catch b2 is formed, or a plurality of such catches may be provided on the plate B if desired, and this catch is adapted to engage the flap of the envelope and a metallic reinforce C thereon, in order to fasten the envelope.

The reinforce C is bent up from a blank of 6o the form shown in Fig. 2, and is formed with perforations c similar to those in the envel- `ope attachment B, which, when the plate is bent on itself and clamped on the flap, as in Figs. 1- and 4, will firmly clasp the iap and 65 be permanently held thereto.

The attachment O has an elongated slot c', extending through both its members and through the envelope flap a', the slot being adapted to receive the catch or tongue b2 on 7o the attachment B.

The envelope is. fastened by bending the v tongue b2 at about right angles to the plate B and passing it through the slot c', as shown in Fig. 4, after which it is folded down, as indicated by dotted lines in the latter igure, and sealed by wax, a strip of paper pasted over the tongue, or in other suitable manner, and when thus sealed opening of the envelope without showing evidence of its having 8o been tampered with is practically impossible.

It will be seen that the fastener permits of the opening of the envelope without mutilating the latter, or its contents, or impairing Athe fastener, and the envelope may therefore 8 5 be employed as a permanent receptacle suitable for the filing away of papers and documents.

' The fastener is of simple and durable con-l struction, and enables the envelope to be 9o most conveniently fastened and unfastened,

as desired.

Having thus described my invention, -I v claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent- Y As a new article of manufacture, an envelope provided with a fastener consisting of a perforated metallic plate, bent on itself and clamped to the body of the envelope at `the ment having a slot adapted to receive the opening therein, the perforations being at fiexible tongue ofthe envelope body attachxo both sides of the clamped edge of the envelment, substantially as described. ope, and the plate havinof at one edve, at the v 1 '5 exterior of the envelopean integra flexible GEORGE A HARRIVS' tongue, and an attachment on the envelope Vitnesses: ap consisting of e perforated plate bent on HENRY NEFF, itself and clasping the liep, the flap ettach- FRANK M. PORGH. 

